Judge denies WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange bail

Julian Assange on Tuesday, ordering the leader of secret-spilling website behind bars as his organization’s finances came under increasing pressure.

Assange showed no reaction as Judge Howard Riddle denied him bail in an extradition case that could see him sent to Sweden to face allegations of rape, molestation and unlawful coercion.

Assange denies the accusations and has pledged to fight the extradition, while a spokesman for his organization said the U.S. diplomatic secrets would keep on flowing — regardless of what happened to the group’s founder.

“This will not change our operation,” Kristinn Hrafnsson told The Associated Press ahead of Assange’s hearing. As if to underline the point, WikiLeaks released a cache of a dozen new diplomatic cables, its first publication in more than 24 hours.

Assange appeared at before City of Westminster Magistrates’ Court in London after turning himself in to Scotland Yard earlier Tuesday, capping months of speculation over an investigation into alleged sex crimes committed in Sweden over the summer.

Judge denies WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange bail

“…A British judge jailed WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on Tuesday, ordering the leader of secret-spilling website behind bars as his organization’s finances came under increasing pressure.

Assange showed no reaction as Judge Howard Riddle denied him bail in an extradition case that could see him sent to Sweden to face allegations of rape, molestation and unlawful coercion.

Assange denies the accusations and has pledged to fight the extradition, while a spokesman for his organization said the U.S. diplomatic secrets would keep on flowing — regardless of what happened to the group’s founder.

“This will not change our operation,” Kristinn Hrafnsson told The Associated Press ahead of Assange’s hearing. As if to underline the point, WikiLeaks released a cache of a dozen new diplomatic cables, its first publication in more than 24 hours. …”

WikiLeaks’ Julian Assange arrested in England

By JENNIFER EPSTEIN

“…WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange was arrested Tuesday in London on sexual assault charges, and is due to appear in a British court before the end of the day.

Scotland Yard confirmed in a statement that its said its extradition unit had “arrested Julian Assange on behalf of the Swedish authorities on suspicion of rape.” …””…One of Assange’s lawyers said his team will fight extradition to Sweden, in part to avoid eventually ending up in the hands of U.S. authorities. “I think he will get a fair hearing here in Britain but I think our, his, prospects if he were ever to be returned to the US, which is a real threat, of a fair trial, is, in my view, nigh on impossible,” London lawyer Jennifer Robinson told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

The Wikileaks sex files: How two one-night stands sparked a worldwide hunt for Julian Assange

By Richard Pendlebur

“…The Stockholm police want to question him regarding the possible rape of a woman and separate allegations from another Swedish admirer, with whom he was having a concurrent fling. But there remains a huge question mark over the evidence. Many people believe that the 39-year-old ­Australian-born whistleblower is the victim of a U.S. government dirty tricks campaign.They argue that the whole squalid affair is a sexfalla, which translates loosely from the Swedish as a ‘honeytrap’. …”One thing is clear, though: Sweden’s complex rape laws are central to the story.”…Using a number of sources including leaked police interviews, we can begin to piece together the sequence of events which led to Assange’s liberty being threatened by Stockholm police rather than Washington, where already one U.S. politician has called on him to executed for ‘spying’.The story began on August 11 this year, when Assange arrived in Stockholm.He had been invited to be the key speaker at a seminar on ‘war and the role of the media’, ­organised by the ­centre-Left Brotherhood Movement.His point of contact was a female party official, whom we shall refer to as Sarah (her identity must be ­protected because of the ongoing legal proceedings).An attractive blonde, Sarah was already a well-known ‘radical feminist’. In her 30s, she had travelled the world following various fashionable causes.While a research assistant at a local university she had not only been the protegee of a militant feminist ­academic, but held the post of ‘campus sexual equity officer’. Fighting male discrimination in all forms, including sexual harassment, was her forte.Sarah and Assange had never met. But in a series of internet and telephone conversations, they agreed that during his visit he could stay at her small apartment in central Stockholm. She said she would be away from the city until the day of the seminar itself.

The prosecution’s case has several puzzling flaws, and there is scant public evidence of rape or sexual molestation

What happened over the next few days — while casting an extraordinary light on the values of the two women involved — suggests that even if the WikiLeaks founder is innocent of any charges, he is certainly a man of strong sexual appetites who is not averse to exploiting his fame. …”

Read more:

Don’t shoot messenger for revealing uncomfortable truths

By Julian Assange, December 8, 2010

WIKILEAKS deserves protection, not threats and attacks.

“…It is neither. WikiLeaks has a four-year publishing history. During that time we have changed whole governments, but not a single person, as far as anyone is aware, has been harmed. But the US, with Australian government connivance, has killed thousands in the past few months alone.

US Secretary of Defence Robert Gates admitted in a letter to the US congress that no sensitive intelligence sources or methods had been compromised by the Afghan war logs disclosure. The Pentagon stated there was no evidence the WikiLeaks reports had led to anyone being harmed in Afghanistan. NATO in Kabul told CNN it couldn’t find a single person who needed protecting. The Australian Department of Defence said the same. No Australian troops or sources have been hurt by anything we have published.But our publications have been far from unimportant. The US diplomatic cables reveal some startling facts:► The US asked its diplomats to steal personal human material and information from UN officials and human rights groups, including DNA, fingerprints, iris scans, credit card numbers, internet passwords and ID photos, in violation of international treaties. Presumably Australian UN diplomats may be targeted, too.► King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia asked the US to attack Iran.► Officials in Jordan and Bahrain want Iran’s nuclear program stopped by any means available.► Britain’s Iraq inquiry was fixed to protect “US interests”.► Sweden is a covert member of NATO and US intelligence sharing is kept from parliament.► The US is playing hardball to get other countries to take freed detainees from Guantanamo Bay. Barack Obama agreed to meet the Slovenian President only if Slovenia took a prisoner. Our Pacific neighbour Kiribati was offered millions of dollars to accept detainees.In its landmark ruling in the Pentagon Papers case, the US Supreme Court said “only a free and unrestrained press can effectively expose deception in government”. The swirling storm around WikiLeaks today reinforces the need to defend the right of all media to reveal the truth.Julian Assange is the editor-in-chief of WikiLeaks. …”http://www.theaustralian.com.au/in-depth/wikileaks/dont-shoot-messenger-for-revealing-uncomfortable-truths/story-fn775xjq-1225967241332

WikiLeaks Has A Right Under U.S. Constitution’s 1ST Amendment To Publish These Documents

The Judge Explains Why We Have A 1ST Amendment To Newt Gingrich

WikiLeaks Website Taken Offline! Site Back Up With New Address

What Happens To WikiLeaks If Julian Assange Is Arrested? WikiLeaks Attorney Interview

Federal Government’s Job Is To Keep Us Safe But Now We’re Going A Step Too Far!

Inside Story – Julian Assange and the ‘red notice’

WikiLeaks Has A Right Under U.S. Constitution’s 1ST Amendment To Publish These Documents

Julian Assange: Is WikiLeaks Biased?

WikiLeaks Boss Assange Arrives At UK Court

Alison Chung and Andy Winter, Sky News Online

“…WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has arrived at a court in London after he was arrested by British police over sexual assault claims made in Sweden.

The elusive 39-year-old Australian was earlier detained by Scotland Yard officers after he voluntarily went to a police station in central London.Speaking outside City of Westminster Magistrates’ Court, Mr Assange’s lawyer Mark Stephens said his client is “fine”.Asked about the meeting with police, he replied: “It was very cordial. They have verified his identity. They are satisfied he is the real Julian Assange and we are ready to go into court.”Police contacted Mr Assange’s lawyer last night after receiving a fresh European arrest warrant from Swedish authorities, as anger grows in the US over the latest leaked embassy cables by the whistleblowing website.Mr Stephens, who has labelled the move a “political stunt”, has warned any attempt to extradite Mr Assange will be resisted, “mainly on the grounds that he may be handed over to the Americans”.Two women in Sweden have claimed they were sexually attacked in separate incidents when Mr Assange visited the country in August.

It’s important to remember that Mr Assange has not been charged with anything, he only wants to be interviewed as a witness, so magistrates may decide they’re not happy with sending him to Sweden…

Jim Rogers on QE2 – ‘It has never worked’

Federal Reserve Debt Monetization Explained.

“Looks Like Magic” – Ron Paul on the Fed’s Money Machine

Peter Schiff : Dollar not mighty any more

CNBC: Fed’s Big Gamble–What Could Go Wrong?

Peter Schiff Proves He Is A Baboon By Claiming QE2 A Government Conspiracy To Support Treasuries

Peter Schiff : It’s Scary How Clueless Bernanke Is!

The FED’s magic with money

FED Was Liquefying The World

Peter Schiff : Dollar not mighty any more

Fed Bank Documents Revealed

Background Articles and Videos

Introduction to Monetary Policy

The Chairman Part 1

The Chairman Part 2

FED using foreign banks to monetize debt behind closed doors

Reply to Quantitative Easing Explained

Black Friday, the Federal Reserve, & The Global House Of Cards

Money supply

“…Empirical measures

Money is used as a medium of exchange, in final settlement of a debt, and as a ready store of value. Its different functions are associated with different empirical measures of the money supply. There is no single “correct” measure of the money supply: instead, there are several measures, classified along a spectrum or continuum between narrow and broad monetary aggregates. Narrow measures include only the most liquid assets, the ones most easily used to spend (currency, checkable deposits). Broader measures add less liquid types of assets (certificates of deposit, etc.)This continuum corresponds to the way that different types of money are more or less controlled by monetary policy. Narrow measures include those more directly affected and controlled by monetary policy, whereas broader measures are less closely related to monetary-policy actions.[6] It is a matter of perennial debate as to whether narrower or broader versions of the money supply have a more predictable link to nominal GDP.The different types of money are typically classified as “M”s. The “M”s usually range from M0 (narrowest) to M3 (broadest) but which “M”s are actually used depends on the country’s central bank. The typical layout for each of the “M”s is as follows:

Type of money

M0

MB

M1

M2

M3

MZM

Notes and coins (currency) in circulation (outside Federal Reserve Banks, and the vaults of depository institutions)

V[8]

V

V

V

V

V

Notes and coins (currency) in bank vaults

V[8]

V

Federal Reserve Bank credit (minimum reserves and excess reserves)

V

traveler’s checks of non-bank issuers

V

V

V

V

demand deposits

V

V

V

V

other checkable deposits (OCDs), which consist primarily of negotiable order of withdrawal (NOW) accounts at depository institutions and credit union share draft accounts.

V[9]

V

V

V

savings deposits

V

V

V

time deposits less than $100,000 and money-market deposit accounts for individuals

0: In some countries, such as the United Kingdom, M0 includes bank reserves, so M0 is referred to as the monetary base, or narrow money.

[11]

MB: is referred to as the monetary base or total currency.[8] This is the base from which other forms of money (like checking deposits, listed below) are created and is traditionally the most liquid measure of the money supply.[12]

M1: Bank reserves are not included in M1.

M2: represents money and “close substitutes” for money.[13] M2 is a broader classification of money than M1. Economists use M2 when looking to quantify the amount of money in circulation and trying to explain different economic monetary conditions. M2 is a key economic indicator used to forecast inflation.[14]

M3: Since 2006, M3 is no longer tracked by the US central bank.[15] However, there are still estimates produced by various private institutions. (M2 +large deposits and other large, long-term deposits)

MZM: Money with zero maturity. It measures the supply of financial assets redeemable at par on demand.

The ratio of a pair of these measures, most often M2/M0, is called an (actual, empirical) money multiplier.Fractional-reserve banking

Main article: Fractional-reserve banking

The different forms of money in government money supply statistics arise from the practice of fractional-reserve banking. Whenever a bank gives out a loan in a fractional-reserve banking system, a new sum of money is created. This new type of money is what makes up the non-M0 components in the M1-M3 statistics. In short, there are two types of money in a fractional-reserve banking system[16][17]:

In the money supply statistics, central bank money is MB while the commercial bank money is divided up into the M1-M3 components. Generally, the types of commercial bank money that tend to be valued at lower amounts are classified in the narrow category of M1 while the types of commercial bank money that tend to exist in larger amounts are categorized in M2 and M3, with M3 having the largest.Reserves are deposits that banks have received but have not loaned out. In the USA, the Federal Reserve regulates the percentage that banks must keep in their reserves before they can make new loans. This percentage is called the minimum reserve requirement. This means that if a person makes a deposit for $1000.00 and the bank reserve mandated by the FED is 10% then the bank must increase its reserves by $100.00 and is able to loan the remaining $900.00. The maximum amount of money the banking system can legally generate with each dollar of reserves is called the (theoretical) money multiplier, and, following the formula for the sum of an infinite convergent geometric series, can be calculated as the reciprocal of the minimum reserve. For example, with a reserve of 20%, the money multiplier would be 5, as 20% divided into 100% makes 5.

The bank then calculates its reserve using the minimum reserve percentage given by the Fed and loans the extra money. If the minimum reserve is 10%, this means $90 will remain in the bank’s reserve. The remaining $810 can only be used by the bank as credit, by lending money, but until that happens it will be part of the banks excess reserves.

Laura writes a check for $400, check number 7771. The total M1 money supply didn’t change, it includes the $400 check and the $500 left in her account. (MB = $900, M0 = 0, M1 = $1710, M2 = $1710)

Laura’s check number 7771 is accidentally destroyed in the laundry. M1 and her checking account do not change, because the check is never cashed. (MB = $900, M0 = 0, M1 = $1710, M2 = $1710)

Laura writes check number 7772 for $100 to her friend Alice, and Alice deposits it into her checking account. MB does not change, it still has $900 in it, Alice’s $100 and Laura’s $800. (MB = $900, M0 = 0, M1 = $1710, M2 = $1710)

The bank lends Mandy the $810 credit that it has created. Mandy deposits the money in a checking account at another bank. The other bank must keep $81 as a reserve and has $729 available for loans. This creates a promise-to-pay money from a previous promise-to-pay, thus the M1 money supply is now inflated by $729. (MB = $900, M0 = 0, M1 = $2439, M2 = $2439)

Mandy’s bank now lends the money to someone else who deposits it on a checking account on yet another bank, who again stores 10% as reserve and has 90% available for loans. This process repeats itself at the next bank and at the next bank and so on, until the money in the reserves backs up an M1 money supply of $9000, which is 10 times the M0 money. (MB = $900, M0 = 0, M1 = $9000, M2 = $9000)

M2

Laura writes check number 7774 for $1000 and brings it to the bank to start a Money Market account (these do not have a credit-creating charter), M1 goes down by $1000, but M2 stays the same. This is because M2 includes the Money Market account in addition to all money counted in M1.

Foreign Exchange

Laura writes check number 7776 for $200 and brings it downtown to a foreign exchange bank teller at Credit Suisse to convert it to British Pounds. On this particular day, the exchange rate is exactly USD $2.00 = GBP £1.00. The bank Credit Suisse takes her $200 check, and gives her two £50 notes (and charges her a dollar for the service fee). Meanwhile, at the Credit Suisse branch office in Hong Kong, a customer named Huang has £100 and wants $200, and the bank does that trade (charging him an extra £.50 for the service fee). US M0 still has the $900, although Huang now has $200 of it. The £50 notes Laura walks off with are part of Britain’s M0 money supply that came from Huang.

The next day, Credit Suisse finds they have an excess of GB Pounds and a shortage of US Dollars, determined by adding up all the branch offices’ supplies. They sell some of their GBP on the open FX market with Deutsche Bank, which has the opposite problem. The exchange rate stays the same.

The day after, both Credit Suisse and Deutsche Bank find they have too many GBP and not enough USD, along with other traders. Then, To move their inventories, they have to sell GBP at USD $1.999, that is, 1/10 cent less than $2 per pound, and the exchange rate shifts. None of these banks has the power to increase or decrease the British M0 or the American M0; they are independent systems.

The Federal Reserve previously published data on three monetary aggregates, but on 10 November 2005 announced that as of 23 March 2006, it would cease publication of M3.[15] Since the Spring of 2006, the Federal Reserve only publishes data on two of these aggregates. The first, M1, is made up of types of money commonly used for payment, basically currency (M0) and checking account balances. The second, M2, includes M1 plus balances that generally are similar to transaction accounts and that, for the most part, can be converted fairly readily to M1 with little or no loss of principal. The M2 measure is thought to be held primarily by households. As mentioned, the third aggregate, M3 is no longer published. Prior to this discontinuation, M3 had included M2 plus certain accounts that are held by entities other than individuals and are issued by banks and thrift institutions to augment M2-type balances in meeting credit demands; it had also included balances in money market mutual funds held by institutional investors. The aggregates have had different roles in monetary policy as their reliability as guides has changed. The following details their principal components[19]:

M0: The total of all physical currency, plus accounts at the central bank that can be exchanged for physical currency.

M1: The total of all physical currency part of bank reserves + the amount in demand accounts (“checking” or “current” accounts).

When the Federal Reserve announced in 2005 that they would cease publishing M3 statistics in March 2006, they explained that M3 did not convey any additional information about economic activity compared to M2, and thus, “has not played a role in the monetary policy process for many years.” Therefore, the costs to collect M3 data outweighed the benefits the data provided.[15] Some politicians have spoken out against the Federal Reserve’s decision to cease publishing M3 statistics and have urged the U.S. Congress to take steps requiring the Federal Reserve to do so. Libertarian congressman Ron Paul (R-TX) claimed that “M3 is the best description of how quickly the Fed is creating new money and credit. Common sense tells us that a government central bank creating new money out of thin air depreciates the value of each dollar in circulation.”[20] Some of the data used to calculate M3 are still collected and published on a regular basis.[15]

Current alternate sources of M3 data are available from the private sector.

[21] However, some would argue[citation needed] that since the Federal Reserve has even less control over the fluctuations of M3 than over those of M2, it is unclear why this number is relevant to monetary policy.As of 4 November 2009 the Federal Reserve reported that the U.S. dollar monetary base is $1,999,897,000,000. This is an increase of 142% in 2 years.[22] The monetary base is only one component of money supply, however. M2, the broadest measure of money supply, has increased from approximately $7.41 trillion to $8.36 trillion from November 2007 to October 2009, the latest month-data available. This is a 2-year increase in U.S. M2 of approximately 12.9%.[23] …”http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Money_supply

FACTBOX-Obama’s deal with Republican on Bush tax cuts

*

Obama proposes 2-year extension of all tax rates

* Concedes to Republicans on individual, estate taxes

* Angry response from many fellow Democrats

Dec 8 (Reuters) – President Barack Obama proposed a Republican-backed tax deal this week to extend all Bush-era income tax cuts for two years, veering to the right after his party suffered big losses in last month’s congressional elections.

The plan still needs to gain at least some support from congressional Democrats, who control both houses of Congress for the rest of this year.

As

a result of the Nov. 2 elections, Republicans will take control of the House of Representatives next year and expand their power in the Senate, leading Obama to make a deal.

Without this legislation, all tax cuts initiated by former President George W. Bush expire on Dec. 31.

Most Democrats want to extend the lower tax rates for individual income up to $200,000 only, while Republicans pushed for extending tax cuts for everyone including the wealthiest.

The Democratic option passed the House last week but failed to pass the Senate on Saturday, leading to what Obama called a necessity to deal with Republicans to prevent most Americans from seeing higher tax bills come January.

Following are key components of the deal:

INDIVIDUAL INCOME, INVESTMENT TAXES

* Obama and his economic advisers came out strongly before the congressional elections on the need to extend only the so-called middle-class rates, arguing the country couldn’t afford the extra billions it costs to fund the extended breaks for the rich.

* After Republican gains on election day, though, Obama signaled he was open to compromise. First he offered a temporary extension of the top rates with a permanent extension of the lower rates. Republicans rejected that offer.

* Along with keeping all the current tax rates as is, the deal also keeps capital gains and dividends taxed at a top rate of 15 percent. Obama and Democrats had sought a 20 percent top rate.

ESTATE TAX

* Obama also gave in to Republican demands on the estate tax, by proposing a 35 percent tax with a $5

million

individual exemption level.

* That level was originally pitched by Republican Senator Jon Kyl. Obama and Democrats had wanted to renew the tax at 2009 levels of 45 percent rate with a $3.5 million exemption level. The estate tax expired this year.

UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE

* The deal proposes to extend long-term unemployment insurance for 13 months, without a requirement that it be paid for immediately with budget cuts elsewhere, as Republicans had been demanding.

* Two million people by the end of the year will lose their benefits if the benefits are not extended, according to the National Employment Law Project, which advocates for workers’ rights.

* Jobless benefits usually expire after six months, but since the recession took hold in 2007, Congress has voted to extend them for up to 99 weeks.

ALTERNATIVE MINIMUM TAX

The plan “patches” the alternative minimum tax by indexing it to inflation to prevent more than 20 million middle-class taxpayers from getting hit with the tax, which originally was intended to ensure the wealthy pay some income taxes.

EXPENSING FOR BUSINESS

* Lets businesses of all sizes to write off investments faster in 2011. This benefits capital-intensive companies the most.

PAYROLL TAX CUT

* Employers and workers each pay a 6.2 percent payroll tax, which funds Social Security. Under the proposal, workers get a two percent cut in their share for one year, so they will pay a 4.2 percent payroll tax in 2011.

* The Social Security Trust Fund would be paid back by a transfer of general funds.

* A payroll tax credit was recently recommended by several deficit-fighting panels as a way to spur growth.

FAMILY TAX CREDITS

* Continuation of the Earned Income Tax Credit for working families for two years.

* Extension of a $1,000 child tax credit for two years.

* Renewal of a college tax credit of up to $2,500 for two years. (Editing by Philip Barbara)

Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003

The tax cuts enacted by this legislation were retroactive to January 1, 2003
and first applied to taxes filed for the 2003 tax year. These individual rate
reductions are scheduled to sunset on January 1, 2011 along with the Economic
Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 unless further legislation is
enacted to make its changes permanent.[2] This comparison
shows how the ordinary taxable income brackets for each filing status were
changed.